Papua-New Guinea

Oblems And Planners

Papua-New Guinea entangled in [?]odern Theories

By Gt

DST-WAR rehabilitation of the native people of Papua and New to their pre-war state ad in itself have been a tremend r task, but the work was in ised by those who held the tinies of these people in their ids. his was done by the drafting of rogramme of radical changes in pational, sociological and iomic life. he Planners said that living idards of the P-NG people must raised to a level commensurate i their places in Western civil ion. Above all, they must be ;ected from any possible in nces or infiltration of Com listic ideologies. ich were the post-war problems ng the Territorial Administra . As the years passed, the >lems were increased by the ;d stature of the Red Bogey, :h complicated the methods of Cementation” evolved by the aucratic machine. pre-war years a Resident lagistrate or District Officer iipervised the needs of a dis with a minimum of staff. The ess of evolution was slow, but ras thorough and it unfolded f in a tempo understood by the litive minds of those subjected ,s influences. the ten years following the the procedure of absorbing the ir-pnvileged, dependent inhab s of Papua-New Guinea has irgone a considerable change— >f course, is only natural in a i where all values have changed, perts have clamoured for in ve action concerning their own cular field: health, hygiene, ation or economics, ery year Reds and their fellow filers in the United Nations been hypercritical of Aus i’s administration of the Trust tory, charging dilatoriness in ing up the country and apathy jrning native welfare, eorists have laid down blue s and drawn plans as to how ivhat should be done with back peoples, while heckling Opposi politicians in Australia have led that native interests were ; neglected in favour of cap tic “exploitation” of the in les. \DED down with this mixed •urden of directives, trying to :eep in step with an army of •ts and the overlords at Can , the P-NG Administration has no easy task to perform in re flating the people of all

colours, launching a developmental programme, bringing new areas under control and policing native welfare in general.

The Territory has become snowed under by political control and in fluences. Its economic possibilities deserve greater scope than are afforded now.

Divorce P-NG from the ham stringing at Canberra: appoint a non-political, top-level, experienced man to run the show with a free hand, assisted by a Legislative Council representative of all the sections of the community, whose deliberations become effective not vetoed by a departmental official at Canberra, and the Territory would be a happier, healthier place for Ell.